While no official announcements have been made, the owner of the modern 5,000-square-foot retail space at 560 Valencia Street (which Blu Dot has occupied since 2013) is now actively seeking a new tenant.

The marketing materials for the prime Mission District space tout “a national mecca for millennials, techies & tourists.” The asking rent is $54 per square foot per year. And Blu Dot should be out by April 2018.

Blu Dot does most of their sales online as I understand it, so the showroom may not need to make money on its own but just serves as a place to view the product. I’m surprised they aren’t opening another location in the city for such purpose.

“Essentially every single story commercial/industrial building in this city needs to be torn down and replaced with a 4-10 story mixed use building.”

So, you want to eliminate most of the rapidly-diminishing number of remaining well-paying working class jobs (ie, PDR jobs). I guess those workers making $20-$40/hr can all just go sling coffee at Starbucks or clean floors in the Salesforce Tower, or better, just move to Manteca. No one owes them a living, right? I guess they all should just become successful real estate speculators or develop a disrupting pizza delivery app.

Do you understand the class snobbery and economic elitism that your statement reveals?

“So, you want to eliminate most of the rapidly-diminishing number of remaining well-paying working class jobs (ie, PDR jobs). I guess those workers making $20-$40/hr can all just go sling coffee at Starbucks or clean floors in the Salesforce Tower, or better, just move to Manteca. No one owes them a living, right?”

Personally I look forward to its consumption being controlled the same way alcohol consumption is today. Hello “open container” laws! Pot smoking stinks and is a much bigger imposition on the surroundings than drinking alcohol. Can’t wait for it to be confined to licensed establishments and private homes, not that I have high hopes that SFPD will be enforcing the laws.

Fishchum, potheads typically ignore the rules, because if a policeperson happens to see them, they can always claim they have a Proposition 215 card. I’ve had two different policemen tell me that they will simply not write citations for people violating smoking laws while using marijuana.

Unless you think that there is a pretty-close-to-infinite demand for marijuana products, there simply can’t be multiple “dispensaries” (presumably) competing with each other that can generate enough revenue to pay $54 per ft² per year rents. Prices will have to drop and marginal retail operations facing high overhead will have to close down.

And if there is that much demand, God help us when recreational sales start going full steam.

Valencia is simply no longer a viable place to do retail business unless you are running a bar/club, a bar that serves food in order to have a liquor license, or a pricey boutique. Or a pot store. Or a brothel.

If pot continues the slow but steady march toward legalization people will soon be getting it delivered from Amazon. Local dispensary’s – which are one if the few bright spots propping up neighborhood retail asking rates – will go the way of local book stores. I’m betting restaurant.

Why is the vacancy note here news? I’m not up to date on my hidden implied message. Is this that the canary in the coal mine, look out for new condos, or just a random FYI on a retail notice coming up for rent?

SocketSite has themes and generally posts information and news indicating an undercurrent in the market trends of SF. The castro listing is notable for a variety of reasons. I’m less clear on this post hence my question above.